Descent into Madness
by TheRedFox8
Summary: A surprising twist using one of the endings of Star Fox Command


_He told her to go and get lost.  
When they met once more, he saw the bitter cost._

He had ran back to fix the problems of thee.  
Only when he did, she was gone, leaving him with a lonely destiny.

He a committed a crime against his best friend.  
And he saw his life from sweet beginning to bitter end.

The girl and the friend were watching him forever.  
Only then did they know that the live man and dead girl belonged together.

In due time the man had died.  
When he saw her again, he dropped and cried.

He wanted to explain to her but there was nothing for him to tell.  
After some time he learned: He is not in heaven, but instead his own personal hell.

_~Reona Fox_

_Author's note: This story does not represent my beliefs on how the Star Fox franchise should be headed. Personally, I think Fox and Krystal be a happy couple. However, my love of writing tragedies forces me to write otherwise. This is just a "what if" scenario. Star Fox and its characters belong to Nintendo, yadda yadda yadda._

_This is based off the "Star Wolf Returns!" ending from Star Fox Command:_

_Star Wolf rises! Across Lylat, people talk of Wolf O'Donnell and his courageous crew. But they are less kind to Krystal, feeling that she was wrong to abandon Star Fox. But she ignores the talk and proceeds with her new life as a member of Star Wolf._

_Eventually, the slings and arrows of the populace are too much to bear. They begin to hiss as she walks by, and name her traitor to her face. She is alone... and hated. She pulls away from Star Wolf and tries to find meaning in this new, cruel world._

_Haunted by her past, Krystal abandons her life and flees to a distant galaxy. Changing her name to Kursed, she survived by collecting bounties on the worst scum in the galaxy. Years later, she runs into Fox during a job on planet Kew... _

_He does not recognize her._

Prologue

It has been six years since the end of the evil Anglar Invasion. Team Star Fox saved the day and the Lylat System was safe once more. However, this was also the time they said their goodbyes.

Peppy has long before left the team and went on to become the next great general of the Cornerian Army. He would lead them to many successful battles.

Krystal never met up with the Star Fox team since she got kicked out before the Invasion. Facing mass rejection and hatred, she discarded her former life, becoming the ruthless bounty hunter Kursed. She currently remains on Kew, looking for contracts.

Slippy went on to be with his beloved fiancée, Amanda. They went on to have a prosperous life and had many children.

Fox and Falco remained together with the Great Fox II and ROB, the last remaining parts of the original Star Fox team. Times have been hard for these three and the Great Fox II and ROB had fallen into worse repair since the beginning of the Sauria mission undertaken so long ago. There has been talk of selling the Great Fox II and settling on a remote planet, but such decisions seem to be far from being made, or so they hoped.

Randomly roaming the Lylat System looking for things to do, they happen to stumble across the planet Kew…

Date: Six years after the Anglar Invasion

Location: The Great Fox II, in orbit of Kew

Time: 2240 Hours

There was a light flickering in the rec room aboard the Great Fox II, and the various canned laughter from old sitcoms echoed through the empty passageways. Falco Lambardi was slouched on the large sofa in front of the ragged television set, a can of Mountain Dew in one wing, and the TV remote in the other.

Fox McCloud passed by and happened to see his miserable-looking close friend wasting himself away in front of the trashed set. The picture was noisy and the picture tint changed from blue to purple to green sporadically.

"Hey, ready to land on Kew first thing tomorrow morning?" he asked.

Falco answered with a rather loud belch. He held up the aluminum can to Fox and said, "Hey, Fox. Have you tried this stuff? I picked up some at Corneria last time we went there. Wanna try it? It's pretty tasty!"

Fox cocked his head at the green-colored can and shook his head. "Naw thanks. Hey, Falco, are you just going to sit there and watch TV reruns all night?" Fox asked, showing slight concern in his friend's health. "I'm headed to bed. You turning in soon?"

"Falco turned and faced the TV again. Ehhhhh… Maybe after this is over. Depends on what is coming on next."  
"Falco, you're going to kill yourself with the way you've been lazing the days away lately."

"Oh, shut up," Falco said angrily because he was missing a good part of his show. "I can take care of myself. You ain't my mother!"

Fox shrugged and left the rec room with a "Good night."

Date: The next morning

Location: Gyn'dridda City, Kew

Time: 0945 Hours

Kew's sun rose over the tops of the trees, bringing its light to the primitive Gyn'dridda City. Already, its streets were filled with the citizens going to and from their destinations. Kursed emerged from one of the travellers' lodges and peered into the busy streets.

A new contract in hand, she was about to return to her ship to head over there. Apparently, she was supposed to track down a thug who beat his wife and children and then fled from the planed Aquas. Aqua was rather far from Kew, but it was nothing she couldn't handle.

Her form was heavily concealed; hardly any skin was visible. She was dressed in heavy robes, with a cloak and hood concealing any noticeable part of her body. She was well recognized as scum of the Lylat System herself and she preferred not to bring any attention to herself.

As she made her way to the hidden spot where she kept her ship, she saw two small objects in the sky not far from her present location. As she examined them closer, they appeared to be two personal spacecraft. She took interest to this, as not too many space-faring beings travel to this planet. It's too primitive.

The two of them landed right in the middle of town without any regard for the people staring at them as if the ships were bright pink and the cockpits opened up. Kursed watched as two figures climbed out of the spacecraft and landed on the ground, looking around at their surroundings. Kursed stared at them for a bit. Something about them seemed… familiar. Suddenly she gasped!

"Fox!" she cried out, making the both of them jump. "Fox? Is that you?"

"Who's that?" Fox asked, apparently looking for the source. Kursed stepped out and approached them. "Fox, it's been too long."

"What are you talking about? I've never met you!" Fox replied, trying to back himself away, Falco left, being of no help. He thought this was humorous and he wanted the two of them to be left to do whatever.

"Don't you remember me? It's me! Krystal!" she removed her hood, letting her face be seen.

Fox studied her for a couple of minutes then a slight look of anger crossed over Fox's face. "Oh. It's you. How has Star Wolf and _Panther,_" he added, putting an emphasis of hatred on the name, "treated you?"

"I-I left them, Fox. They weren't very good to me on account of that stupid mistake I made a long time ago. They hated me; the population hated me for what I did. I-I didn't know what to do anymore. I hid, Fox. I hid and made myself secluded. I want to correct my mistake, Fox. Please take me back! I still love you!"

Fox looked at her for a minute, and then shook his head. "I'm sorry, Krystal, but I have given you your chance. You threw it away. You threw it right back at my face! How much emotional trauma do you think _I_ went through? You think you had it bad? Maybe you should think about other people and not just yourself for a change!" He then turned tail and left Krystal standing alone on the street, tears forming in his eyes. It was hard to say that, but she deserved it.

Krystal slumped to the ground, threw her hood back up, and cried bitterly. Having Fox, the only one she truly loved, back in her arms was now a simple fantasy. She would never see him again, and he was the only thing left that gave her purpose in this life. Without him, she was a lifeless husk, mindlessly fulfilling contracts as a bounty hunter.

She stood up and wandered away in a random direction. The only thing on her mind right now was to run. It was the only thing she knew how to do. She found a hidden spot between two buildings and cried bitterly, the only thing worth living for in her life gone.

"Hey, why the hurry?" Falco wondered after Fox confronted him in the center of town, wanting to leave.

"I have my reasons. Let's just go quickly," Fox responded, almost pushing Falco to their two ships: the Arwing II and Sky Claw. They hopped into the cockpit and Falco just sat there without initiating the startup process.

"Hey, Falco, what gives?" Fox asked.

"I'm not taking off until you tell me what is going on," Falco responded, being annoyingly stubborn.

"Look, can we just go if I tell you?" Falco's responding nod told him the answer.

"Okay… I ran into Krystal not far into town. She wanted to come back to us, but I told her no because of all the pain she caused us. I gave her her chance a long time ago. I just want to leave so I don't have to see her again.

"Fox, just snap out of it! We both know that you longed for this day, to get her back. You thought it was just a fantasy day waiting some fifty years or more in the future. Fox, that day is now, and you're throwing it away. You need to get your furry butt back down there and get her back. You may never have the same chance again."

Fox looked down at his Arwing's console and sighed. "You're right, Falco. I need to do something. Thanks, buddy."

"No problem," Falco said. "Go knock her dead!"

Filled with extra morale, Fox hopped out of the Arwing II and took off back toward the spot where he met Krystal. Not finding her there, he looked around town, confused. Eventually he started to hear blood-curdling screaming. Fearing the worst because the screaming sounded like Krystal's, Fox rushed toward the source. There between two buildings, his fears were confirmed. Krystal was on the ground, thrashing about wildly.

"Krystal! What's wrong?" Fox shouted, but she only continued to thrash and scream.

"Krystal! Answer me!" Fox cried, running over to her body and crouched over it. He tried to hold her down as if that would help stop the thrashing, but that only made it worse. What was peculiar about the screaming is that Fox could hear a trace of crying mixed along with it, as if it was caused by sadness.

"Krystal, I'm here. Tell me what's wrong?" Fox was relieved to hear that the screams were quieting down and her mad thrashing slowed down a bit. What he didn't expect was that her breathing was slowing down and she appeared to be in the process of falling asleep… or worse.

She didn't answer as she slipped further and further into her apparent fatigued state. It was as if she couldn't hear Fox at all.

"Krystal, are you… dying? No! Don't leave me! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!" When he looked down, she lay quite still, and never moved again. Fox subsequently thrust out his chest and let out a terrible scream.

Not long after that, Falco came hurrying up. "What's wrong? I heard- Oh my god! What happened?"

Fox stared at Krystal's body for a few minutes in complete and utter silence.

"Helllooooo?" Falco said, waving a wing in front of Fox's face. "Is anyone there?"

Suddenly in one quick motion, Fox drew out his blaster and leveled it at Falco's head. He instantly backed away, both wings up.

"What are you doing, Fox? Put that thing down!"  
"You did this to me, Falco! You killed her! I'll kill you!" Fox shouted, not quite himself anymore.

"Dude, I did nothing! You did nothing! You were in no way involved in her death!"

"LIES! You made me go back! I had to watch her die, and it's all your fault! You will pay!"

"Fox! Calm down! It's nobody's fault!"

Fox wouldn't listen. He stood there, blaster pointed at Falco with intent to kill.

Falco's eyes darted to the side every now and then to find an escape route. Finally he took a chance and suddenly darted to the side to try to escape.

Before he caught himself, Fox fired his blaster due to the sudden movement. He sent a bolt straight through Falco's head, killing him instantly.

Seeing what he had done, Fox dropped the blaster and fell to his knees as heard the city's police force close in around him, apparently responding to the sudden unrest. He was instantly arrested due to the fact that there were two dead bodies and a blaster lying on the ground right next to him.

Fox wasn't sentenced to death, but he was sentenced to life in prison. Due to General Peppy's recommendation to keep his friend alive while at the same time punishing him, the judge saw that it was a far greater punishment to live in the regret and shame of killing two of your best friends rather than simply dying.

Fox lived the rest of his days cold, alone, and mentally broken down. Since the major shock of seeing his two best friends die within minutes of each other he has been nearly completely unresponsive to the world around him. He has never spoken a word to date and it has been an effort by the prison guards to try to get him to eat.

Fox died alone when his time came. He used to be the great hero of the Lylat System as leader of Star Fox, but now he was labeled as one of the most undeniably filthy scum of the galaxy.

End


End file.
